Apple CEO Tim Cook visits Beijing. (Photo : Getty Images)
China is no longer Apple's second biggest market after the company saw a decline of revenue on a year-on-year basis and iPhone's market share is declining further.
Quartz reported on Tuesday how Apple's beloved Middle Kingdom market is laying disappointing numbers with a revenue drop of 26 percent to $12.5 billion.
To make matters worse, Apple's iPhone is no longer the Chinese favorite smartphone as Oppo gains the top spot overtaking the Cupertino-made device and other China-made smartphones.
Revenue Drop
According to Quartz, Apple reported its first decreased revenue from China during the second quarter of 2016, exactly one year after the Middle Kingdom had overtaken Europe as the second biggest Apple market in the world.
Based on charts presented in the report, Apple's revenue breakdown shows that Europe took back its original place as the company's second biggest market with $9.64 billion sales tailing behind the United States with $17.96 billion.
On the other hand, China only pitched in $8.85 billion to the global market revenue of the iPhone maker, an amount nearly half of what it gathered for Apple during the same period in 2015.
Quartz believes that there are many factors that led to this situation including the recent crackdown of regulators on tech companies as well as the shutdown of Apple's its iBooks and iTunes movie stores.
Oppo Becomes China's Favorite Phone
Aside from that, there is the fact that the iPhone is no longer the Chinese's favorite mobile device with Oppo taking the top spot.
The Chinese smartphone maker surpassed Huawei, Apple, and Xiaomi in terms of market share in the Greater China according to data Forbes collected from the Counterpoint Technology Market Research firm.
Oppo rose to ranks and overtook Huawei's original title as the top selling smartphone in China with a 16.8 percent year-on-year growth.
According to Counterpoint, Oppo provided Chinese smartphone users with "head-turning, innovative smartphone designs" that helped the start-up company quickly rise to the top spot.
"Oppo's immense focus on industrial design and key features, such as camera, battery technology and materials, has helped Oppo maintain an edge over its rivals and win consumer mindshare - especially in the under 25-years age group," Counterpoint research director Neil Shah explained to Forbes.
This provided a bleak future for Apple devices especially the iPhone especially now that the smartphone market in the country is nearing saturation and the lack of innovative features that will make consumers regain their love for the device.
